Letters From Ralph Casey

Wake up to What's Happening!

Do you want the truth or should I gloss it over?

Here it is short and to the point!

Did you know that farriers are making more money than any other equine business in every state of US? According to the Equine Marketing Report, Equine Insurance is the top money maker.

Did you know that the vet costs you money? By the vet promoting "our trade" you are losing money every day. It makes the horse owner think the vet is the expert.

The FARRIER should be promoting their trade!

I have been trying to tell you farriers this for 20 years.

As the government seems to be trying to take over, don't think the idea of farrier licensing has gone away. No-No! It is still alive and being kicked around by a handful of AFA leaders who don't have a clue about business.

If you don't get involved in politics and don't know what is going on, you will wake up one day and your trade will be pulled right out from under you.

No one is paying attention. Every member should be down here at convention time because most farriers don't have a clue about what is going on in the equine political arena.

Here is what really happens if licensing comes along. You will have idiots running the industry, vets will be writing prescriptions for corrective shoes and they don't have any idea what corrective shoes do anyway.  Shoeing prices will skyrocket. Here is the big kicker.  The horse industry will start going down hill. The cowboy shoer will be kicked out.  And here is the real truth, the cowboy shoer and horseshoeing schools are the real promoters of the horseshoeing industry. Not everyone can afford a certified farrier, get real.

What has made this county great is the little small business, the independent guy, the shade tree mechanic and so on. If you don't believe me, take a look at our country. The big corporations are collapsing and they are taking the little guys money to try to build it back up. Go figure.

I will explain this step by step at my business clinic

It is good to hear farriers talking about problems in trimming and shoeing and not running each other down.  It’s just great.  As President of the BWFA, I hear all the bad comments coming in from Horse Owners all over the world, especially since we have a Horseshoe’n Time, a national television show.

I think everyone will be shocked when I give you these statistics.  Out of 1,000 complaints on lame horses, 990 will become lame from trimming.  Only a small portion of complaints are the result of shoeing that lames the horse.  This is what we are seeing here at The FNRC and BWFA Headquarters.  I know this shocks you guys.  Since we have the research center, I have been totally and completely surprised at some of the discoveries we have made in the past years.  I’m in the process of preparing some down to earth, simple things that the majority of farriers are missing. 

We have found that incorrect trimming in very young horses is doing more damage than we have ever imagined before.  We have also found that the majority of the horses that we look at, one leg is longer than the other.  So it brings me to my whole point.  The main reason for trimming or shoeing is to keep the bony column of the leg in alignment, where in when the foot strikes the ground, the entire bony column, including the spine, equally absorbs the concussion. 

Our studies so far have also found that when using a horse often, trimming is not enough.  This is not only my opinion, but the research of the FNRC findings.  See ya at the Convention in October where we can talk about this subject and a whole lot more! 

5 Common Hoof Problems

As President of the Farriers' National Research Center & School in Georgia and Brotherhood of Working Farriers Association, I have a different way of looking at "hoof problems" than most.  As Farrier Educators and professional farriers, we will see and have hands-on with more hooves than any other equine professional.  Think about it, one farrier may pick up more or less 5,000 hooves in a years time. I feel safe to say that "farriers are the most important equine professionals to the overall health of the horse." Here are a few "Hoof Problems" of what we as a group at the FNRC most encounter.

# 1 Grass Founder

New horse owners have a tendency not to understand correct feeding procedures and tend to feed hay in winter and lush spring grass in the spring and fall not realizing this is equivalent to a feed bin.  The high sugar content of the early grass and on cool days is like turning them out into a feed bin or like us eating sugar doughnuts every morning for breakfast, when we should have a bran muffin which is better for us.  An abrupt change to the diet will cause hoof problems around the coffin bone that we refer to as founder or laminitis.  The tenderness is apparent by the position the horse stands.

Left unattended, your horse is in terrible pain. No amount of pain relievers will help. Immediate attention is needed by a professional farrier.

First of all, standing in cold water will relieve the pain until the farrier arrives.  We have research and studied tried and true methods of shoeing foundered over the years. In 2005, we happened upon the Nolan Hoof Plates by fellow farrier Mike Nolan of Ohio. By placing the plates on the outside of the hoof wall and applying a plain shoe on the bottom of the hoof, the pain is almost immediately relieved if not by the next day. By maintaining the horse in a confined area and on a proper diet, the plates stay on for 16 weeks allowing the hoof capsule to receive healthy blood flow to the hard to reach areas and a good chance to heal. (photos and video are available at www.hoofplates.com and www.HorseshoenTime.tv)

The number of grass foundered horses could be cut in half if owners would feed properly.

#2  Moisture, Filth and Bacteria

Horses are confined more than they should be therefore moisture and filth causes bacteria to form that turns into hoof rot, diseases, thrush, fungus and the worst being White Line Disease.

There is a white line inside the outer hoof wall that is visible when your farrier trims and/shoes your horses hooves.  This white line is like the life line to hoof problems and a trained farrier can tell just what is going on by the color, distortion, width of the line, etc. to determine other problems. 

Again, putting the responsibility on the horse owner, I believe every owner should be trained in cleaning out the hooves on a regular basis whether barefoot or shod. Your farrier can show you how to "safely" handle the feet as not to injure the owner or horse. Regular visits by a farrier every six to eight weeks will keep problems at bay. Ask the farrier to show you the white line (which is really a tan color sometimes referred to as the dirt line in the old days)

The first step is a good trim to remove all dead and diseased hoof, sole and frog. Treatments are varied these days depending on each case and the environment. The key is to provide a dry stall or pasture area and properly cleaning it no matter what product you use to treat it.  An excellent liquid is Hoof Mate made by Mobile Milling Services as long as you keep the hooves dry. Keeping hooves dry is almost impossible for owners to accomplish, even the dew on grass causes excess moisture.

Another good solution is a product that is used primarily by farriers and is now available for horse owners.  Vettec now makes a soft instant pad material, Equi-Pak CS for Thrush.  It can be placed in the "clean" crevices around the frog or cover the entire sole.  With a shoe in place, it will stay in longer sometimes up to 6 weeks depending on "the care" the hooves receive.  It treats and seals out the moisture and allows the diseased area to heal. It's great!

#3  Lameness over time:

The majority of unsound horses begin while babies by improper trimming and neglect.  We have found that more horse owners and farriers do not understand the main reason for trimming and shoeing a horse and I explain it as, "To keep the boney column in alignment so when the foot strikes the ground, the entire boney column (including the spine) equally absorbs the concussion."  I find that farrier students and owners can understand this with a few demonstrations. Understanding what happens when the hoof hits the ground, how the conformation dictates how the foot will land, and how the heels and toes will wear off and flares develop are all important to maintain sound hooves for a lifetime. Trimming is important during the growth and early years of the horse's life to keep the hoof in better shape and the boney column in alignment. I suggest starting at 3 weeks old with the mare and every six weeks like all adult horses. This is also a crucial time for the farrier to bond with the baby just as much as it is for the owner to handle and bond as well.

#4  Proper Nutrition

The hoof is a product of what the horse eats. Exercise and Nutrition plays a big role in providing healthy hooves. Feeding from within is the key. Once the owner understands the grass founder warnings, then learn what to do for those dry cracked feet, soft hooves that won't hold a shoe or are tender while barefoot.  Each horse is a little different in its needs, so treat them different. Be educated on proper nutrition and discuss it with an Equine Nutritionist at a horse fair or club meeting and with the farrier.

#5  Using the Wrong Shoe for the Event

A misconception about farriers is that they want to shoe everything in sight. Not so, trimming is just as important and shoeing is needed depending on the activity of the horse, the environment and integrity of the hoof itself. NOT all horses are the same!!!  Let the farrier do his or her job, by choosing the proper shoe for the use. There are over 700 shoe styles and many more helpful add on products to choose from. Traction is important, too much or not enough, heavy or light shoe.  The words "corrective shoeing" used by farriers is misunderstood by owners as well. Owners will say, "I just want shoes, nothing fancy" not realizing that most shoeing jobs are correcting the hoof back to a good shape for that particular horse allowing it to grow out again, again and again. Horseshoe styles are thinner, thicker, narrow or wide webbed, creased, rim or flat, plain, pre-shaped, heeled and the list goes on and on. Let the farrier do their job and again a little horse owner education can go a long way at understanding your horse and the care it needs.

As you can see, I suggest that Horse Owner Education can help solve most hoof problems occurring today. As the farrier association reaches out to the consumer, there is a greater need for a more educated farrier, thus, the Farriers role in "whole hoof care" evolves.

We feel so strongly about educating the public, that we started a television show in 2000. So join us for Horseshoe'n Time and Horseshoe'n Time Let's Talk television shows to learn more about techniques, products and new inventions by farriers and horse owners themselves. 

WOW!

I have thoroughly enjoyed the 2005 Cross Country tour and especially meeting all of those who come out to support the clinics and the hosts in each state we visited so far.  We filmed at each one and will be including footage in future Horseshoe’n Time shows as a BIG “THANK YOU !”  I look forward to seeing all of you again at our convention in Georgia. 

As I write this today, I just left Barry Denton’s ranch in Skull Valley, Arizona on August 28. What a beautiful and historical place he and his wife Laurel have here, we enjoyed every minute of our short stay.  At the same time I watched the Weather Channel in amazement of the damage from Hurricane Katrina. I had visited the Florida panhandle and Mobile Alabama area in July. My thoughts go out to those farriers and their families.  We have discussed in the past a way to help farriers in need. Our Injured Farriers Fund and the new Pension Plan are good ideas if farriers would take the time to contribute.  We may need to formulate a Disaster Fund; it will be a good topic for the convention.

I am now on my way to Las Vegas, then Colorado to visit with John and Jody Lyons, to the Oleo Acres Farrier Store in Berthoud, then to Nebraska to visit with Friends of Equus in two location, then on to South Dakota to the meet up with Rick Wheat and West Quest at the Spirit of the West Festival.  That should be great fun !  Then on down to Wichita, Kansas to meet up with long time member Sean McDonough, over to John Burt’s school in Arkansas, next to Mississippi to support a new young farrier down there and on up to Huntsville, Alabama. Then home to Georgia just in time to get ready for the Convention November 4 & 5.

Most everyone has been interested in discussing the farrier licensing “saga” and adding their own opinions to our BWFA Opinion Poll. For those of you who don’t know what is going on, the subject was originally brought up by the American Farriers Association earlier in February and boy has it stirred up a hornets nest !

I touched on the subject just a little in the last bulletin.  Since then the internet has been buzzing which is where most of the comments are coming from.  Who is implanting this”  Who is committing on it?  Somehow, the AFA pulled our name, the BWFA and me into this so by request of many BWFA members we prepared an Official Statement from the BWFA. We printed it in this bulletin. That should be that !!  I did not see a need for the BWFA board to be bickering, intimidating and slandering back and forth on-line when we have our own agenda to stay focused on.  But, I can say that we will be discussing this at the convention, in person with the entire membership.  In return, the membership will be asked to vote.

Another very disappointing and controversial subject brought out by the AFA is their Education/Registration Task Force formed by their Executive Committee to “survey horseshoeing schools.”  A simple phone call to all schools with a polite request for a schools brochure would have been nice.  After all the American Farriers Journal and www.horseshoes.com has been listing schools in directories for years.  But no…..the AFA leaders intimidated and ridiculed several schools and distributed articles and press releases to equine publications on the matter. Not just one school, but most all private school owners are outraged.  We have taken the liberty to print a press release from the Horse Illustrated September issue.  I find this a slap in the face to all farriers and all schools and completely inaccurate!  Before the schools could even communicate with their Task Force, the damage was done. 

Also, regardless of what bad press some schools, like mine, receive from AFA leaders, most all of the private school owners know each well enough to come together to meet on these matters.  Reggie Kester of the Oklahoma State Horseshoeing, a highly respected educator I might add, instigated a meeting of private school owners that became a reality on August 13-14 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  We have included the press releases and resolutions of this new independent association named AFEC; the American Farriers Education Council. (Do not be confused by the name, this is NOT and AFA affiliated group)

As you notice a Spokesperson was named to answer any and all questions, so if you don’t hear it from Bob Smith, you didn’t hear it right.

As a private school owner myself, and on behalf of the BWFA Master Educator Schools, I can make the following comments. Private School owners are farriers, self employed operating a business just like a farrier would.  Private school owners can make their own decisions without permission from anyone else which is not likely permitted in a public University style system. I am proud to say that as a school owner, I was present at the meeting.  We all made a plan, agreed to it, immediately executed it, and that’s that.

Now, to let BWFA members know where I stand, I will be resigning from the AFA Task Force (I disagreed with the word Task Force anyway, we are not in Iraq!) My letter is also being printed in this bulletin, so you saw it here first.

The reason for my this long lengthy explanation of the facts from the BWFA Headquarters is to simply clarify the issues for our members.  I have also said if you want to know me, know my opinion, ask me a question, then ASK ME, Call me, or attend a clinic and the convention – I am always there.  There is just too much here say out there.

To end on a very positive note, as I travel on this Cross Country Tour, I have been meeting BWFA and AFA farriers alike, and many hard working shoers who have a desire to become certified in the future.  They just need the opportunity and I feel the BWFA is just that.  I have harped and harped on you for years about continuing education, the Farriers’ National Research Center was formed, and the Horseshoe’n Time television promotes you and your association.  Promoting you is my role as your President and Spokesperson.  I enjoy it and believe me the BWFA is growing in numbers.  Don’t despair over “negative waves” we will get through all of this and be better for it.  Membership doesn’t cost, It Pays !! 

Very seldom do I comment about trimming or shoeing these days, simply because I'm tied up in so many research projects that are going on here at the Farriers’ National Research Center.  However, I do take the time to read and I've really enjoyed reading all these comments from farriers.  You have some great points.  So, I'll throw my 2 1/2 cents worth in too!  Hopefully it will help someone.   It is good to hear farriers talking about problems in trimming and shoeing and not running each other down.  It's just great.  As President of the BWFA I hear all the bad comments coming in from Horse Owners all over the world, especially since we have a Horseshoe’n Time, a national television show.

I think everyone will be shocked when I give you these statistics.  Out of 1000 complaints on lame horses, 990 will become lame from trimming.  Only a small portion of complaints are the result of shoeing that lames the horse.  This is what we are seeing here at The FNRC and BWFA Headquarters.  I know this shocks you guys.  Since we have the research center, I have been totally and completely surprised at some of the discoveries we have made in the past years.  I’m in the process of preparing some down to earth, simple things that the majority of farriers are missing.  We have found that incorrect trimming in very young horses is doing more damage than we have ever imagined before.  We have also found that the majority of the horses that we look at, one leg is longer than the other.  So it brings me to my whole point.  The main reason for trimming or shoeing is to keep the bony col. In line where in when the foot strikes the ground the entire boney structure of the horse equally absorbs the concussion.  Our studies so far have also found that using a horse often, trimming is not enough.  This is not only my opinion but the opinion of the FNRC findings.